Sitting in on a taping of Tim Allen's new ABC sitcom, "Last Man Standing"

So how did I almost wind up winning an autographed "Tim the
Tool Man" Taylor toolkit while attending a taping of Tim Allen's new ABC
sitcom, "Last Man Standing" ? It's kind of a funny story.

Tim Allen and Nancy Travis on the
set of "Last Man Standing." Photo by Peter "Hopper" Stone. Copyright American
Broadcasting Companies, Inc. All rights reserved

To explain: I have always wanted to attend a TV taping just
to see what one was like. But in all my previous trips to Southern California,
the timing just never worked out. Either they weren't taping while I was in
town or I had waited too long to order tickets. So I kept missing my chance.

But this past summer, Jim had asked Angela Ragno and I if we'd
like to come along and help cover the 2011 D23 EXPO for JHM. And since Angela
is an event planner ... Well, she knows a thing or two about planning ahead.
Which is why - before I had even got on
the plane to fly out to Orange County - Angela had already lined us up some
seats for "Last Man Standing."

Which - given that Tim Allen's new show was going to be on ABC's Fall schedule
("Last Man Standing" actually has its series premiere on that network tonight at
8 p.m. ET / PT) - I thought this sitcom would be shot on the Disney Lot in
Burbank. No such luck. As it turns out, "Last Man Standing" is a 20th
Century Fox production. Which - to further confuse the issue - is being shot at
the CBS Studio Center in Studio City.

The entrance to CBS Studio Center
in Studio City

Anyway ... On the day of the taping, Angela and I drive up
from Anaheim and roll up to the gate at CBS at the appointed hour. The
instructions that came with our "Last Man Standing" tickets said to arrive at 5
p.m. More importantly, because cameras and cell phones aren't allowed on the
soundstage during a taping, we were told to lock all of that stuff up in the
car.

Angela and I made our way to the meet-up point at CBS Studio
Center. A page then walked our group back to the soundstage where "Last Man
Standing" was being shot. En route, we passed trailers for "CSI." I also
noticed that - as we walked through the Lot - that NBC's new sitcom, "Whitney"
also seemed to be shooting at CBS Studio Center.

Once we actually got to the soundstage, before we entered
the building, all would-be audience members first had to be wanded by Security.
Just to make sure that none of us were still carrying our cell phones and/or
were trying to smuggle a camera into this taping.

After that, we led up into the bleachers on this soundstage.
Angela and I wound up with great seats, right down front. And I then tried to
take in everything that was going on around me.

There were sets for "Last Man Standing" all over this
soundstage. Some to our left, some to our right, while the main set of the
Baxter household was right in front of us. Meanwhile the cameramen and technicians were all making
ready for the start of taping.

Then suddenly the warm-up guy appeared. His job was to keep
the crowd in the bleachers upbeat & energized. He kept asking for
volunteers to come help him out. Which I eventually found myself standing in
front of the "Last Man Standing" set, trying to lead this group in a cheer. It
didn't work.

Now because "Last Man Standing" was a brand-new show at this
point which had yet to air ... Well, obviously the members of the audience at
this taping had no clue as to who these characters were and what their
relationships might be. Which is why - before this taping got underway - the warm-up
guy screened the pilot of "Last Man Standing" for us. At which point, we were well
versed in the world of Mike Baxter, his wife and three daughters.

And then finally it was time to start taping. The producer
of "Last Man Standing" introduced the cast, with Tim Allen - of course -
getting the largest round of applause as he entered. Tim grabbed the mike and
said a quick "Hello" to the crowd. And with that, the taping of Episode 3 of
this new ABC series quickly got underway.

I have to admit that that was what impressed me the most
about attending this taping of "Last Man Standing." How quiet & professional
the cast and production team were. Each scene in this sitcom has obviously been
rehearsed well in advance. The cast all hit their marks and got their laughs.
Sometimes - just to freshen things up a bit - Tim would vary his reading of a
particular line or maybe tweak a punchline. But there wasn't a lot of horsing
around or ad-libbing. They'd do two, sometimes three takes of each scene and then
quickly move on to the next camera set-up.

The only member of the cast who wasn't actually cooperating
with this extremely professional on-set work attitude was little Evan or Luke
Kruntchev (I'm not sure which twin they had in front of the camera that night).
This extremely cute toddler plays Tim Allen's grandson on "Last Man Standing."
But as toddlers often do, Evan and/or Luke was misbehaving. Which is why -
after a while - young Mr. Kruntchev was taken backstage.

The producer then came out and explained that they'd shoot
those parts of this episode which featured the grandson character at another time when
this toddler was feeling better / was better behaved. But in the meantime, to
help the actors who were still onstage get through this scene / maintain the
proper sightlines when it came to performing this scene with a toddler, the "Last
Man Standing" production team then brought out a blonde-headed doll. Which then
became Little Mr. Kruntchev's stand-in for the rest of the scene.

As time went on, the warm-up guy - in order to help keep the
audience's interest and energy level up - challenged us to singing and dancing
contests. The studio even provided us with pizza and bottles of spring water.

By the time 9 p.m. rolled around, this "Last Man Standing"
taping was over. The cast all gathered onstage for a quick bow, waved to the
audience and then disappeared backstage. The warm-up guy then announced that he'd
awarding a special souvenir to the audience member who had done the most to
keep the crowd revved up that night. At our taping, this person was a young
Irish girl who worked as a counselor at a camp for autistic children. Her
energy (more importantly, her laugh) was so infectious that, all throughout the
taping, the warm-up guy kept circling back to her.

Anyway ... As you might have already guessed, this special
souvenir was a genuine "Tim the Tool Man" Taylor toolbox from Tim Allen's first
sitcom, "Home Improvement." And since Tim himself had signed this toolbox, the
young Irish woman seemed very pleased with her prize.

And as for me ... Well, it's not like I went home from this "Last
Man Standing" taping empty-handed. I have my memories ... as well as an
autographed picture of Tim Allen that I got for volunteering. Which was pretty
cool.

And - no - this is not the kind of
camera that they use to shoot "Last Man Standing."Photo by Peter "Hopper"
Stone. Copyright American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. All rights reserved

So now ... Well, having seen how this sitcom was shot, I just
can't wait 'til later this month to see what changes - if any - they've made to
the episode of "Last Man Standing" that I saw get taped.

But - all in all - this was a very fun experience. And I
highly recommend that you try and attend the taping of a sitcom the very next
time that you're out in LA.